Research team
Expertise
Rafael Pedemonte is a historian specializing in the cultural Cold War in Latin America — particularly in Cuba and Chile — as well as in cultural mediation and the concept of revolution. His research follows two directions: he studies the role of cultural mediators in shaping interactions and representations between Latin America and Europe, especially the Caribbean and France; and he examines the root causes of the Cuban Revolution from a state-centered, comparative perspective, analyzing the main factors behind processes of state collapse.
Cultural Mediators in Contemporary Latin America across Transnational Flows.
Abstract
This project investigates the multilayered processes of cultural mediation in contemporary Latin America, focusing on the interplay between North-South and South-South exchanges. At the core of this inquiry lies the figure of the cultural mediator - an individual whose work facilitates the circulation of ideas, cultural influences, and representations across linguistic and geopolitical borders. Three emblematic mediators will be examined: Wifredo Lam (1902–1982), Lydia Cabrera (1899–1991), and René Depestre (1926). The primary objective is to explore how these figures, all of whom were partly active in twentieth-century Cuba, contributed to shaping transnational cultural flows and networks. Building on the "Transnational turn" and on Cultural Transfer Studies, this research seeks to address key gaps in the literature by pursuing three specific objectives: (1) to consult and analyse previously unused primary sources (mainly correspondence) to illuminate the hidden mechanisms of mediation, such as the choices, compromises, and exclusions that shaped the process beyond its final products; (2) to compare the dynamics of South-South and North-South cultural mediation, thereby contributing to a more decentralised understanding of global cultural exchanges, as each of the three mediators engaged in both South-North and South-South interactions (within Latin America and with Africa), fostering cultural dialogues that transcended linguistic, political, and geographic boundaries; and (3) to explore the conditions and constraints of cultural mediation in a communist context, focusing on revolutionary Cuba - a crucial yet understudied site of Cold War cultural exchanges - by analysing how state control, ideological frameworks, and political commitment redefined the agency of mediators through three divergent trajectories vis-à-vis the Cuban Revolution: Depestre as a supporter from within Cuba, Lam as a supporter from abroad, and Cabrera as an opponent in exile. Methodologically, the project combines archival research (in Paris, Limoges, and Miami), digital mapping of transnational networks, and comparative analysis through interdisciplinary collaboration, culminating in a concluding symposium with local (Leuven) and international colleagues (France, Germany, Chile). It aims to contribute to a renewed approach to cultural mediation, integrating neglected South-South perspectives and comparing trajectories differently affected by the advent of a revolutionary, socialist society. Building on previous exploratory work on cultural mediation in Latin America, this research ultimately seeks to provide a stronger foundation for interdisciplinary reflection on how cultural mediators shape the global circulation of ideas, forms, and representations - both from Latin America to the "Global North" and across other decolonial spaces.Researcher(s)
- Promoter: Pedemonte Rafael
Research team(s)
Project type(s)
- Research Project